Diabetes is common, disabling and deadly. In the U.S., diabetes has reached epidemic proportions. According to the American Diabetes Association, about 24 million people (8% of the total U.S. population) have diabetes, and nearly two million new cases are diagnosed in people aged 20 years or older each year. If current trends continue, 1 in 3 Americans will develop diabetes at some point in their lifetime, and those with diabetes will lose, on average, 10-15 years of life expectancy. Importantly, up to 25% of people with diabetes will develop a diabetic foot ulcer, resulting in 3 million diabetic foot ulcers annually in the U.S. alone. More than half of all foot ulcers will become infected, thus requiring hospitalization, and 1 in 5 will require an amputation that carries a high risk of mortality.
Without question, diabetes puts tremendous economic pressure on the U.S. healthcare system. Total costs (direct and indirect) of diabetes have reached $174 billion annually, and people with diagnosed diabetes have medical expenditures that are over two times higher than medical expenditures for people without diabetes. Hospitalization costs alone are $16,000 to $20,000 for a patient with a diabetic foot ulcer, and direct and indirect costs of an amputation range from $20,000 to $60,000 per patient. A recent study by researchers at the University of Chicago suggested that treatment costs for diabetes in the United States would reach $336 billion by the year 2034. Advanced, cost-effective treatment modalities for diabetes and its co-morbidities, including diabetic foot ulcers, are in great need, yet in short supply, globally. According to the American Diabetes Association, by the year 2025 the prevalence of diabetes is expected to rise by 72% to 324 million people worldwide.